Boating accidents claim 23 lives  | News

The vast majority of deaths occurred in inland waterways.

According to the figures, the underlying cause of 11 deaths on recreational boats was alcohol-related. Photo: Merja Siirilä / Yle

Twenty-three people died in recreational boat accidents from January to August on Finnish waterways, according to preliminary figures from Traficom, the Finnish transport and communications agency.

The majority of victims (22) were men, two-thirds of them middle-aged or older, with 18 victims over the age of 55.

Travicom noted that the use of life jackets saves valuable additional rescue time in boat accidents.

“Year after year, the most common cause of a fatal accident is boat capsizing or tilting, causing a person to fall into the water. [Survival] Life jackets are very difficult to use, especially without outside help. The use of flotation devices often gives valuable additional rescue time. Alcohol is still implicated in an unfortunate number of cases.” Sophie TopariHead of the Marine Qualifications Team, Traficom.

According to the figures, the underlying cause of 11 deaths on recreational boats was alcohol-related.

Travicom reported that most of the victims (13) were in motorboats, while six were in rowing boats and two in a canoe or kayak.

The vast majority of deaths occurred in inland waterways.

However, fatal boat accidents during January-August decreased slightly compared to last year.

Meanwhile, a total of 4,344 watercraft were first registered during that time this year, which is about 12 percent less than in 2021. The majority of first registrations were motorboats, but jet skis continued to be popular, according to Travicom.

“Recreational use of water has clearly increased during the Covid era and the boating trade has also rebounded. This was also shown in first watercraft registration,” said Topari, adding that while new registrations grew during 2020 and 2021, the “boom” appears to have stabilized. “

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